The Dream Is Real. ~ Inception

WARNING: May contain spoilers!

I am the type of movie-goer who doesn’t like action films, and before watching anything I’m not familiar with, I usually watch the trailer first online so I have a good idea of the storyline. Anyway, a good friend of mine was raving about Inception since last week and asked me to watch it with him. So I googled it and watched the trailer. I also read a few notes on the movie, and a lot of times it mentioned that “You really gotta pay attention to get a full grasp of it.” Pretty intrigued on why reviews said that “it can be confusing for the weak-minded,” I was suddenly pretty hyped to watch it!

The film, directed by Christopher Nolan of “The Dark Knight,” is massively original (I would never thought of that kind of story ever!), engrossing, complex, and wildly entertaining. Headlining the movie is none other than Leonardo DiCaprio who plays the role of Dom Cobb, an extractor who specializes in reading people’s minds by lurking in their dreams. In the world of Inception, technology has been developed that allows dream-sharing or extraction – a technique through which several people can inhabit one’s dream world. This ability of Cobb made him the most wanted man in the world of corporate espionage. However, things took a turn when businessman Saito (played by Ken Watanabe) offered him to do the reverse of extraction: Inception – which plants a completely foreign idea into someone’s dream that could change the target’s personality forever. The real heart of the film is its emotional core (with all the sci-fi elements that came with it), as the protagonist is both a professional thief as well as a heartbroken man on the inside. I think the only reason the audience care about the conclusion is because we empathize with Cobb.

Several reviews compared Inception to Matrix, and I can understand why mainly bec of the killer fight scenes – the zero-gravity action is like nothing I have ever seen before!

Inception works on so many levels – although on most times you will find yourself asking what is real and what is imaginary. The line between those two is blurred, causing not only the characters in the movie, but the audience themselves to question such (“OMG dream lang pala ulit yun!”). The story goes as deep as 4 levels (a dream within a dream, within a dream, within a dream) and could at first render you confused (I did! Hehe). As the movie concludes though, this intricate setup pays off as each layer is unpeeled perfectly. So you really gotta pay attention!

Admittedly, Inception is not the easiest film to watch but Nolan did an AMAZING job in making it as understandable as possible. I think a psych major would best appreciate it as it deals with mind-reading and dreams. I am an IT by profession so pardon me if I had to watch it twice (hurriedly watched it again as soon as I got home) to fully understand some of the events. And when you do get a full grasp of the movie, trust me it’s truly worth it! The entire story is so perfectly written that each and every piece fits perfectly together to provide for a very satisfying tale. This will surely bag several Oscar’s – best movie of the year!!

Pro: Truly amazing storyline, fight scenes are a must-see!
Con: Can be confusing and may prompt you to watch it several times to fully understand each and every piece.

TTYL!